Ok... I'm a Newbie...

I have a 312 Fastech with 454 Mags. When I am cruising at 3,500 RPMs I am getting 40 MPH but I have to keep the drives trimmed almost all the way down or it starts hopping. I know I am losing speed but the ride is better.

At WOT I can trim it all the way up and it rides great.

Does this make sense or does anyone have any wisdom for me?

Thanks

Mike

Use your tabs to settle it down. Usually 3-4 on the indicators is a good starting point. Adjust from there. Just dont lay the tabs full down at cruise or you will bury the bow and bow steer which can be very dangerous.

Go take the Tres Martins driving school you will learn a lot about why your boat is doing what it is doing.

Relax. I am not inexperienced with boats, this is just my first go-fast. I understand how to handle the boat, I am just looking for advice on small adjustments from people who want to help.

My boat acts similar, just can't quite carry the bow at slower speeds. I usually trim out a touch until it almost starts to bounce, then drop in a little tab. It is just something you have to play with to find an acceptable compromise between speed and ride. Or in my case I just go faster lol.

Try your tabs level with the bottom of the boat or slightly down from level and it will settle down. If you don't know where level is, put someone in the boat while it's on the trailer and have them adjust while you watch from the ground until you find the setting.

This guys a dick wtf m*******

I second!

OK call me a dick, but the guy states that he trims all the way up, not a good idea for your drives, very bad idea for a step bottom boat. Also his "first go fast".

Why am I being a dick for recommending that he takes a course were he will learn a TON about boat set up and being a better driver. He is drivng a step bottom boat and while the Formula is very forgiving they do spin. There was a guy that spun his 353 because he trimmed it wrong up in MA. When I asked him were his drives were set it was clear why he spun. A guy that is trimming a step bottom boat all the way up clearly does not know how to run it IMO. Sorry if that upsets some but..... We have read to many storys on OSO about people trashing their boats and even deaths because they made a simple mistake. I probalby could have choosen better words (and don't know why I posted so harshly) and will edit my post but hey no one is perfect....

Audio, he didn't say it was trimmed all the way up, he said his bow hops if not trimmed almost all the way in.

Most of our boats will hop at cruise without a bit of tab in. My old 311 with the rocker bottom is especially prone to porpousing at cruise. I usually run my drives at nutral or slightly positive then run the tabs down just until it stops bouncing. Less drag with the tabs in a bit rather than the drives. Of course the stepped boats are different but the principal is basically the same.

So, mdegeneffe, just run your tabs in a bit and play with that. And, welcome to the site. BTW, Audio isn't really a dick, we all get along quite nicely. Must have been PMS!!!